Light Weight Bone Saw.....that works and will continue to work?

Suggestions?

Do you actually hunt then? No foolin'

Daniel, don't you feel like an ASS?!!

Still open to the same question.

I have a Wyoming Knife Corp. bone saw.....works fine..... but I would like to cut down on pack weight if I can.

I have an SOG Revolver knife. The guthook blade works very well, providing you don't do like I did and shoot something with the hide so thick that it doesn't fit inside the hook.

Flip the blade around and the saw blade works VERY well. I was impressed with how well it worked.

I feel just fine, thanks. Before you got your panties in a wad you should note I said no foolin'. It was a serious question.
Being a landscaper and hunter, I use saws more than most. I'd recommend anything from Fiskars. I keep a folding saw from them in my truck for daily use pruning limbs and such. I've had it for years and it is still sharp as hell. Plastic handles and a 10"ish blade. It doesn't weigh much at all and it works great. Lockback like a folding knife, and doesn't take up much room. Don't get your finger. Hope that helps. You should be able to find a saw like this at Home Depot or Lowe's. I googled it an found several immediately. I have a good many Fiskars pieces and generally like them a lot. Their metal handled shovels are great. The employees can't break them in the first five minutes like wooden handled ones.

Trail Blazer Take Down Buck saws are all the rage in the boundary waters. I have never used on but plan on getting one before i go back in May 2010. you can get bone blades for them too. they take down and fit into a single tube.

I can't get the company website to work but there are lots of places on the net that sell them. this is just one example.
http://www.cspoutdoors.com/trailblaztak.html

I can't seem to find the weight listed anywhere so they may not be what you are looking for.

Thanks, Gray Duck!

18" blade too. That's a lot less back and forth than with an 11" something.

DaMan

I have had good luck with "saws" on Swiss Army Knives, Puma Knives, Carl Schepler knives, and the Blaser knife made by Boker,

The saw blade is short, but they "saw" very good.

For a longer and easier cut, take a look at the Gerber saw. The one I have has a wood blade AND a bone blade.

You can switch them out. If you "cut" a lot of bone, as I DO because I saw a lot of pig ribs, you can get extra "bone" blades, and replace them as necessary.

It is a pretty light unit, so for elk, moose etc. it is well worth packing around.

DaMan, PS I used to be a Professional Butcher, so I have "sawed" a bunch of bones.

I use the cheapest folding pruning saw from what would be the equivalent of your homedepot rather than a specialised bone saw from the likes of gerber because I occasionally loose mine on the hill.

I prefer a 8-10" blade to a longer one as it is handier in the body cavity, whilst still good enough to clear branches out the firing arc of a high seat etc.

I've never had one of the cheapos break on me before i've lost them.

A

I used to be a big fan of the Gerber folding saw. I accidentally donated mine to the boundary waters. I have used both the bone and wood blades. However, the last couple replacement wood blades i bought seemed really brittle. I broke a couple of them after only a few uses but my original one lasted several years. In fact I had actually put that old one back in when I lost my saw. Good thing is the blades are only $7.

If all you want is a bone saw the Gerber would probably be hard to beat, esp for only $20. However, IMO if you want one saw for everything the Trail Blazer looks like a better option. Not much fun short-stroking a 6 inch log with that short Gerber blade.

Up until a week ago I would have also recomended the Gerber folding saw. It IS very light wt. and comes with a bone blade and sheath. In fact, it is so lightweight that I don't even hesitate to put it in the pack. BUT... my Brother in Law snapped the wood blade on the second time out. Not really a big deal, but kinda dissapointing.
If you are looking for stricly a bone saw, it might be just right.

Just my 2 cents.
Good luck.

What Ghubert said. About 15 bucks anywhere.

I have sawed some wood with the Gerber, making blinds, it worked fine.

I have sawed a fair amount of bone with it, again it worked great.

It is lightweight, and I consider it a light weight precision cutting tool, and I do not treat it like I am doing a Chain Saw Massacreee

I like the fact that you can get and carry extra blades.

For just sawing up through the sternem of an elk or a moose the sawblabes on the knives have worked great for me.

I prefer the Gerber for ribs, and leg bones.

For meat prep in camp, [if you do a lot of it], where you can drive to camp, get a Professional Butchers saw, looks like a big hacksaw. Get a bunch of extra blades as well.

You can get this at a Butchers Supply, while you are there get a few of their Boning knives and a Butchers Steel too.

If you do not know how to use a steel get the owner to show you .... BEFORE you cut some of your fingers off.

I have been using one of these for about 15yrs - no complaints.

http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___47440

Another vote for the Gerber folding saw.

Wyoming Saw III - separate bone and wood 14" blades

Well since this is the backpacking section....I've got an Opinel folding saw. Light, sharp and has cut through 3 or 4 deer without a hitch..

the chef

I have a little Black and Decker folding saw. It uses reciprocating saw blades and you can carry spares or blades for different applications in the handle. It is pretty light weight. I do have to agree with NE 450 No.2 about the Schlieper saws. They are small, but very sharp. Come to think of it, my Leatherman Charge and Wave saw blades are very good too. Sounds like you want something longer, which I certainly understand.

There are at least two answers to this question.

First I agree with N.E.450#2 The saw on swiss army knives are grate for not being larger than a knife blade as well as all the saw/knives from the soligan companys he mentioned.

For a more aggressive saw I have a couple of Wyoming saws that don't get used much and next step up is Stanley makes a regular crosscut carpenders saw that is real short and light.

I belive the real answer though is don't use one.

On a real backpack hunt you will want to bone everything out, that way you can save yorself the weight of both the saw and the bones on your way out.

This dos'nt always apply because the skull of a moose weighs more than a saw but on the other hand the idea of packing in for several days to hunt for the most part precludes taking an animal you can't get out in one trip.

I used to do a lot of this type of hunting 30 years ago when I had no airplane or money to rent one. Heres how it works simplfied. You carry 50 pounds in and a hundred pounds out. Even when I was a teenager I was'nt ready to turn right around and go back in after that.

If you do need to go back for any game the chances of a bear or eagles or any number of preditors getting there first are likley. In that case you will need to make several short trips fairying the meat hopefully getting it out before it spoils and oh ya that still dos'nt keep the bears from coming into camp at night. Had that happen too many times.

One man hunting alone can carry a boned out sheep or bear skin or deer and his camp in one load. Two guys can carry one goat and there camp in one load.

When I was 18 a friend my brother an I climbed a mountain with absolut minimum gear in November. We killed two goats spent the night and got everything back the next day in one load.

At my age I would say that load would kill me now but truth is the night on that mountain in November without a sleeping bag would get me first. "I want to be young again."

I use for more years than I care to admit a Wyoming saw until recently
I now carry a Gerber saw of the same design

Check out the ARS Pro Series. www.growtech.com. This stuff is not cheap, is top quality. When you need it bad, price is not an issue.

I have carried one of these folding pocket saws from Silkyfox for the last 8-9 years.

http://www.silkyfox.co.uk/folding/pocketboy.html

Best pruning saw, bone saw on the market. Designed to cut on the pull stroke rather than on the push stroke so you have maximum control.

Buy on ASAP you'll never regret it.